INTERNATIONAL TRADE – FOREIGN INVESTMENT

INTERNATIONAL TRADE – FOREIGN INVESTMENT
Source: http://france.usembassy.gov

Trade Policy Report to the President-Elect and the 111th Congress
The Peterson Institute – Special report – January 16 – 16 pages
http://www.petersoninstitute.org/publications/papers/20081217presidentmemo.pdf

“As President-elect Barack Obama and the 111th Congress take office, addressing US trade policy will have to be an important part of the agenda. Responding to the global economic downturn, restoring the global standing of the United States, implementing global-warming initiatives, and clarifying the United States' role in the world economy will all require a rethinking and reform of trade policy. The Trade Policy Study Group, comprising twenty-two former officials and close observers of US trade policy and chaired by Institute director C. Fred Bergsten, presents the President-elect with a four-part strategy for sustaining a constructive trade policy.”
Lee Hudson Teslik Sovereign Wealth Funds Council on Foreign Relations - Backgrounder – Updated January 29, 2008
http://www.cfr.org/publication/15251/sovereign_wealth_funds.html?breadcrumb=%2Fpublication%2Fby_type%2Fbackgrounder
“Creating funds to manage government wealth is not a new phenomenon. But over the past five years, wealth accumulated in existing funds has fluctuated significantly and the number of new funds has spiked.”

Raising Capital: The role of Sovereign Wealth Funds FRB Chicago - Chicago Fed Letter - January 2009 – 4 pages
http://www.chicagofed.org/publications/fedletter/cfljanuary2009_258.pdf
This article describes what sovereign wealth funds do, where their funding comes from, and what drives their investment strategies. It also highlights some of the policy issues that their activities raise.

Invest in America Department of Commerce – International Trade Administration http://www.trade.gov/investamerica/
Invest in America is the primary U.S. Government mechanism to manage foreign direct investment promotion. Efforts are focused on outreach to foreign governments and investors, support for state governments’ investment promotion efforts, and addressing business climate concerns by serving as ombudsman in Washington for the international investment community.

Daniel Griswold Shipping Jobs Overseas or Reaching New Customers? Why Congress Should Not Tax Reinvested Earnings Abroad
Cato Institute - Center for Trade Policy Studies - Free Trade Bulletin - January 13, 2009. http://www.freetrade.org/pubs/FTBs/FTB-036.pdf
“Investing abroad is not about “shipping jobs overseas.” There is no evidence that expanding employment at U.S.- owned affiliates comes at the expense of overall employment by parent companies back home in the United States. In fact, the evidence and experience of U.S. multinational companies points in the opposite direction: foreign and domestic operations tend to compliment each other and expand together.”

Closing Santa’s Sweatshop: How to Deliver on Obama’s and Congress’ Toy-Safety and Fair-Trade Promises Public Citizen - December 2008 – 27 pages
http://www.citizen.org/documents/SantasSweatshop08.pdf
As U.S. toy imports hit record levels, U.S. trade policy and outdated consumer safety protections expose America’s children to a flood of unsafe toys, according to the study. It also documents campaign pledges on import safety made by President-elect Obama and new members of Congress. The United States is expected to import $23 billion in toys in 2008, 90 percent of that from China. Imports this year represent 90 percent of U.S. toys, which is the highest toy import level and share on record. Many nations producing our children’s toys have extremely lax safety standards and enforcement.

Rawles O. King Ocean Piracy and its Impact on Insurance Congressional Research Service - Library of Congress - Web posted January 4, 2009 – 10 pages
http://assets.opencrs.com/rpts/R40081_20081203.pdf Many Members of Congress are concerned about the sharp rise in pirate attacks in the strategic waterways in the Gulf of Aden off the East coast of Africa. Given the sharp increase in the number of pirate attacks, the cost of transporting cargo in international waters could rise dramatically because of the sharp increase in ocean marine insurance rates for ships transiting the Gulf of Aden. Commercial insurers, for example, could require a special war risk insurance premium costing an additional ten of thousands of dollars a day. These additional costs could adversely impact international trade during the current global economic slowdown.